Pups Catch a Crook
by Mustard Lady
Summary: Well, not A crook...a whole gang of them! What? Crime in Adventure Bay? No way! A rash of robberies throughout Adventure Bay have the citizens frightened and baffled. They look to Sheriff Woody for protection and Ryder does his best to help. Then Alex and Skye go missing! Can Woody, Buzz, Ryder, and the Paw Patrol solve the crimes and save Alex and Skye before it's too late?
1. Chapter 1 Break-Ins

**Hello, everybody. Here is another crossover that has been in my plans for a while but I didn't know how to start until now. Hope you enjoy it. I don't own Paw Patrol or Toy Story. Anyway, hope you like it.**

* * *

Woody had left home at the usual time to go to work. Slinky had accompanied him and both felt ready for a fresh new start for the day. As soon as he entered his office at the station, his phone immediately rang. Woody picked up and answered. "Hello?"

* * *

The pups of the Paw Patrol were eating their breakfast at the Lookout. It was a pretty morning and it looked like it was going to be a nice, fun day. Ryder was also eating his breakfast when his Pup Pad rang. "Hello? Ryder here." He answered after swallowing.

"Morning, Ryder." Woody answered.

"Good morning, Sheriff Woody." Ryder smiled. "What's up?"

"Ryder, could you meet us at Mr. Griffith's Office Supply?" Woody sighed. "His store was robbed last night. We could maybe use some help from the Paw Patrol."

"Oh no!" Ryder's eyes widened. "That's terrible. We'll be right there, Sheriff Woody. No job is too big, no pup is too small. Paw Patrol, to the Lookout!"

"Ryder's calling!" The pups all barked and rushed from their dog food bowls, except Rubble. "O-okay, I'm...coming." He mumbled, quickly stuffing the rest of his food into his chubby cheeks and ran after his buddies.

"Well, I guess _your_ bowl is certainly all licked clean." Skye chuckled and the pups giggled. They rode the elevator up to the Lookout roof.

"Paw Patrol, ready for action, Ryder sir!" Chase announced.

"Sorry to interrupt your breakfast pups," Ryder said, "but it looks like we have a serious situation on our hands. Sheriff Woody called and needs our help. Mr. Griffith's office supply store was robbed last night." The pups all gasped.

"Another robbery?" Rocky asked. "That makes...one...two..."

" _Three_ robberies in the passed week!" Chase finished. "There's a thief loose in Adventure Bay!"

"What are we gonna do, Ryder?" Marshall asked worriedly.

"Chase," Ryder addressed his recruits, "I'll need your super sniffer skills to see if we can figure out who has been committing these crimes and hopefully track them down."

"These paws uphold the laws." Chase said firmly.

"Rocky, we could use you to help fix whatever doors have been broken at the store." Ryder said.

"Don't lose it, reuse it." Rocky wagged his tail.

"All right, Paw Patrol is on a roll!" Ryder cheered and departed with Chase and Rocky.

* * *

"Are you sure that was all?" Buzz Lightyear asked Mr. Griffith. He was on a leaf of absence from going to space right now, so when he was in town, he and his wife Jessie who was still Woody's deputy, helped Woody on the job.

"Yes, I counted and recounted everything five times." Mr. Griffith replied glumly.

"Well, the alarm didn't go off." Slinky cocked his head. "That's odd." Just then, Ryder and his two pups arrived.

"Ryder, glad you're here." Woody smiled. "Thanks for coming."

"Sure, Sheriff Woody. So, what happened here?" Ryder asked.

"My maintenance man, Jerry arrived early this morning and said he tried turning off the alarm, but it didn't work at all." Mr. Griffith explained. "It's his job every morning to unlock and open the doors. But then he noticed that some of the aisles didn't look right so he talked to John, my inventory man and they checked the place over. We're missing a printer, a copier, a whole case of ink cartridges, five packages of printer paper, and two sets of stamp letters."

"Sheriff Woody, have you investigated yet?"

"No." Woody shook his head. "Okay, let's go inside." They all entered the store and Mr. Griffith showed them the inventory room, and the aisles where the missing items were supposed to be.

"Jerry did find that the alarm wires had been cut." Mr. Griffith said.

"Cut?" Chase raised his eyebrows. "But how did they even get inside to do it?"

"That's the puzzling part." Mr. Griffith said. "No windows have been broken."

"Let's check those doors over." Buzz said. They checked every outside window and door in the place, but there were no signs of a blowtorch having been used, or any other tip of a sabotaging break-in. "Hmm." Buzz rubbed his chin. "It's almost as if someone just unlocked the door and walked inside, removed the stolen items, then locked the building back up."

"But that's impossible!" Mr. Griffith protested. "None of my employees would ever rob me!"

"Chase, can you try to pick up any strange scents?" Ryder suggested.

"Will do, Ryder, sir." Chase nodded and began sniffing around. He raised his head. "Hmm."

"Do you smell something, Chase?" Slinky asked.

"Hmm. I do smell something unfamiliar," Chase replied, he knew the smells of Mr. Griffith's employees and the scents he was picking up didn't match those. He followed the odor through the building where it led him in the aisles of the stolen items. "You know, I smelled one at the door, then a couple other strange ones came inside then back out!"

"So, it must have been a group effort." Ryder said.

"They'd have to be to move all that loot." Buzz remarked.

"Hey, guys look." Slinky barked outside the back way. "I don't see no tire tracks, but here's a spot of motor oil."

"That's not from ours." Mr. Griffith said.

"Well, it looks like it was definitely a band of robbers who stole from you," Woody sighed. "Unfortunately, they're very good at what they do and have done it before."

"But who would want to take all those office supplies, and why?" Chase groaned.

"Don't know." Ryder said.

"We'll have to have that grease analyzed." Woody said.

Ryder pulled out his Pup Pad. "Marshall!"

"Yes, Ryder?" Marshall answered from back at the Lookout.

"I need you at Mr. Griffith's store quickly. We need your X-ray machine to see if we can figure where this grease spot came from."

"I'm fired up!" Marshall yipped.

* * *

"What do you think, Marshall?" Ryder asked.

"Mmm, not sure exactly. I'll know more once I look at these blood test strips through the X-ray screen. Right now on the asphalt, it's hard to tell." Marshall said.

"Well, we'd appreciate it if you could get back with us about the results as soon as possible." Slinky said and Woody nodded in agreement.

"Sure thing." Marshall nodded and left in his fire truck. Just then, Ryder's Pup Pad rang.

"Hello, Ryder here." He answered.

"Ryder, bud. We need some help up here on the mountain." Jake said.

"Sure, Jake. What's going on?"

"Ohh, it's unbelievable to say that we were robbed early this morning." Jake said, and Ryder could see him holding Everest in his other arm on the screen. Everyone gathered around Ryder.

"What?!" They sputtered.

"Robbed? You too?!" Ryder's jaw dropped.

"Aw, yeah. It was a spooking hassle. Oh, and Everest got hurt in the process."

"Hi, Ryder." Everest feebly smiled.

"Everest, are you okay?" Ryder asked with concern.

"Eh...yeah." She hung her head.

"We could really use some help from the Paw Patrol, and get the sheriff up here too." Jake said.

"We're on our way, Jake." Buzz said into Ryder's phone.

"You and Everest sit tight." Woody added.

"Will do." Jake said. Ryder summoned Marshall to meet them up at Jake's to give Everest a check-up, then off they went.

* * *

"I woke up this morning to find myself locked inside of the cabin," Jake explained while Marshall examined Everest and everyone listened. "I tried throwing my own weight against the door but it was jammed. I called then paged Everest but she wasn't talking coherently. One of our snowboarders finally arrived and let me out. The door had a padlock on it, and I don't have one on my front door! We found the sport supply shed broken into, and that's where I found Everest!"

"How is she doing, Marshall?" Ryder asked.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Buzz asked.

"Everest has a sprained paw, and a bump on the head, but no broken bones." Marshall said. Everest was lying on the sofa with her paw splinted and bandaged, and an ice pack on her head.

"Oh! That's a relief!" Jake gasped and came down to sit by her. He pulled her into his lap. "That's my brave pup!"

"Everest, what did you see this morning?" Woody asked with his arms crossed.

"Well, I was up before Jake and decided to have a morning romp." Everest said. "I didn't go very far, but when I came back, I heard noises in the shed. I saw that the door had been broken, so I carefully went in to see what was going on, then I found a man inside, taking a pair of skis! I tried to stop him, but he...he kicked my p-paw, and then hit me on the head." Her lip quivered a little as she recalled the unhappy encounter. Jake gently stroked her fur.

"Well, I'm just glad you're safe." He told her.

"You sure it was a man you saw, Everest?" Buzz asked.

"Y-yeah. He wasn't as tall as Jake," Everest said, "but he was very mean. He was dressed in black and it all happened so fast."

"Thanks, Everest." Woody said. "You take it easy now and get some rest, little partner." He patted her on the back.

"So, what did you find missing again, Jake?" Buzz inquired.

"Our best, and most expensive pair of skis." Jake replied. "They're specially made and you can't buy them just anywhere. But they're the fastest kind in the world!"

"All right." Buzz nodded.

"Well, we'll see what we can do." Woody said.

"In the meantime, you two stay safe." Ryder added.

"Thanks a lot, guys." Jake smiled, cuddling Everest's head on his legs.

"I hope you feel better soon, Everest." Chase sighed sympathetically.

"Uh-huh." Marshall and Rocky nodded.

"Thanks, pups." Everest smiled. She looked very sleepy. "See you all later."

"Okay." Chase said. He sniffed out the shed and around it, but down the slope, the tracks disappeared. "Eeeww. I smell cigars." He groaned. "But the tracks end here."

"I didn't find any cigar butts in the shed though." Slinky shook his head.

"This is looking bad, Woody." Buzz remarked gravely. "Four robberies within one week!"

"Yeah, first Mr. Romley's best tools were taken last week." Rocky stated.

"Yes, and then all of Farmer Yumi's ropes a few days ago!" Marshall put in.

"Hmm. Tools, ropes, office supplies, and now skis," Ryder said thoughtfully. "Why these things?"

"I don't know." Woody shook his head. "But we have to find out!"

* * *

 **The rest of the story will include the other Toy Story and Paw Patrol characters.**


	2. Chapter 2 Prowlers

When they returned to City Hall to report on their findings, Hello Adventure Bay was there with their cameras. Mayor Goodway filled them in for the most part, but then Woody stepped forward and said that together the sheriff's department and the Paw Patrol would do their best to stop these frightening robberies.

* * *

"How is it that you fellas found no tracks at any of the crime scenes?" Jessie Lightyear asked, twirling her long red, loose hair between her finger as she waited for her husband. She may have been a married woman now, but she was still one of Woody's deputies and her sleuthing instincts were still ingrained inside her head.

"Correction," Buzz answered from the bathroom as he combed his hair. "We did find some up at Jake's cabin; however, they didn't go very far. All we know is they were very small bootprints, and Chase said that he could smell cigars."

"Any idea what kind of bootprints?" Jessie continued.

"As far as we can tell, western cowpoke boots like you and Woody wear." Buzz replied as he turned off the light in the bathroom, came out in his purple pajamas and crawled into bed next to his wife.

"How about finger prints? Hmm?" Jessie asked coyly. She enjoyed jumping ahead of the guys with her deductive reasoning and investigative knowledge.

" _Jessie,"_ Buzz rolled his eyes. "These crooks are smart. They're not gonna let us track them down too well. And besides," He grunted contentedly as he rested his head on the back of his hands, "it's so cold up there it'd be foolish _not_ to wear gloves." Jessie pursed her lips tightly.

"Ha, ha." She cocked her head, her wavy hair bouncing as she did. Buzz couldn't help grinning. Jessie snuggled next to him. "So, who do you suppose these bandits could be?"

"No clue yet." Buzz sighed heavily, holding her close. "But thanks to Rocky, maybe we'll find out sooner than they want."

"Mmm. Well, one thing's for sure," Jessie said, "I sure am glad that I have someone big and strong like you on the case."

"Really?" Buzz teased, arching his eyebrows.

"With us on their trail, and you by my side, what can happen?" Jessie smiled, pinching his large bicep.

* * *

"Wow. This is so cool, Rocky." Zuma wagged his tail. "It's amazing."

"Yeah, all those recycled items you dug out came in very handy." Skye added.

"So, how does this thing work, Ryder?" Marshall asked.

"It's a satellite alarm that Buzz Lightyear gave to us from outer space." Ryder responded. "See, on the screen?" He pointed to their Adventure Bay map on the projector. "All the red dots indicate secret cameras that we've hidden throughout Adventure Bay, places that could possibly be the next targets by these bandits. Sheriff Woody figured out the places. Each camera is placed inside some inconspicuous item that Rocky pulled out of recycle, items that a thief wouldn't think twice about checking. Such as the little camera set up inside the wheel barrow at Farmer Yumi's, it gives a vast view of most of the property, including the back of the barn. These camera systems are highly advanced, so we've typed into the program that anyone or anything suspicious enters the vicinity, the camera blips, sending an alarm signal to our radar so that we can inform Sheriff Woody within seconds and all of us head to the crime scene asap."

"Wow!" Chase exclaimed.

"That really _is_ neat!" Marshall added.

"This way, if anyone else is robbed, we can jump on it faster and maybe find out who's doing it." Skye nodded.

"Exactly." Ryder smiled. "Okay, the signal is on, and we are all set. All right, pups. Time for bed."

"Good-night, Ryder." The pups all yawned.

* * *

Alex Porter woke up from an exciting dream he had of being an official member of the Paw Patrol, disappointed to wake up and realize it was only a dream. But it had been so much fun, and now he couldn't go back to sleep. After ten minutes of no slumber, he decided to go downstairs to the kitchen and have a midnight snack. Wrapping his favorite blanket around his shoulders to keep warm, he tip-toed out into the hall and being cautious not to wake up his grandfather, he snuck down to the kitchen. But as he entered, he was startled to see a shadowed figure rummaging around in the kitchen! Frightened and being so young, he flipped on the kitchen light. "Who are you?!" He screeched. "What are you doing? I'm gonna call my grandpa!" The figure turned and smiled widely at the little boy, with a smelly old cigar sticking out of his mouth. He was short and fat with a broad dark brown hat, and a white beard and a mustache.

"Oh, I'm sorry, kid." He said reassuringly. "I didn't mean to scare you. You see, I haven't eaten for days and I was very, very hungry. I heard that your grandpa had lots of food here. I know it's not right to steal, but I'm so hungry." The old man whined. If Alex had been older, he would've been suspicious as the man didn't have a haggard, starved appearance but instead was rather clean and very _healthy_ looking.

"Why didn't you knock on the door?" Alex asked. "Grandpa would give you food."

"Oh, yeah, I guess I could have, couldn't I?" The man chuckled. "Well, I knocked on someone's door before I got here, just to ask for a little food. But the man was grouchy that I got him out of bed, so I didn't want to make that same mistake."

"What food do you like?" Alex foolishly offered. He gave the man a whole pizza to eat at the table and in fact, the man shared it with him! "What's your name? I'm Alex."

"My name is Pete. You sure your grandpa won't mind you giving food to a stranger?"

"No. Grandpa says we should help people." Alex said. Pete chuckled and ruffled Alex's hair.

"Well, you've been very nice to me, Alex." Pete smiled. "Would you like to try my cigar?"

"Uh, Grandpa says I shouldn't smoke." Alex said nervously.

"Oh, of course. What was I thinking? How stupid of me. I keep forgetting you're a kid, not a grownup." Pete chastised himself. "But still, you've been so nice. I'd like to give you a reward."

"A reward?" Alex's eyes lit up.

"Yes. I want my friends to know what a kind person you are. Would you like to go for a ride with me, and I'll get you some yummy ice cream?"

Alex stared at Pete. "Grandpa says I can't have ice cream at night, and that I can't go for rides with strangers. And besides, Grandpa has lots of ice cream here in the restaurant!"

"Duh, that's right." Pete rolled his eyes. "I wasn't thinking. But, the ice cream I wanted to get you is the best you'll ever taste. And if you like it, your grandpa can sell it. He'll be famous, and it will all be thanks to you. And your grandpa will understand that it was just a reward for a good deed you've done for me. I promise, if he gets mad at you I will take all the blame. We'll give him a big surprise. What do you say?" Alex hesitated. His conscience told him that Pete was a stranger and that he should wake up Mr. Porter and ask permission for this trip. His conscience told him he should forget about the trip, that it wasn't a good idea. But how often did something this exciting happen to Alex, and a midnight adventure? He knew he really shouldn't, but the other part of him wanted the excitement of the offer.

"I should ask Grandpa," He finally said.

"But think of how proud he'll be when I show you off because of how nice you've been to me." Pete persisted. Alex bit his lip, thinking.

"Okay, I'll go." He put on a big smile, but he suddenly felt a little sick inside.

"Get dressed, then we can go get some ice cream!" Pete clapped. "But don't wake your grandpa. Remember, it's a surprise!"

"Right!" Alex smiled and quietly went to his bedroom. He changed into his day clothes and grabbed his iphone. He left the bed unmade and his favorite blanket in the living room. "I'm ready!" Alex announced when he returned downstairs.

"Shush it, kid!" Pete hissed. "Supposed to be quiet, remember?"

"Oh, yeah." Alex nodded. "I'm just so excited." Inwardly though, his stomach felt a little sicker than before.

"Good. Let's go!" Pete smiled, taking Alex's hand.

* * *

At the Pride's home, Slinky slept wherever he pleased at bedtime, but most often he slept with 17-year-old Mitsy. The two of them had been best friends ever since Woody and Bo Peep adopted Mitsy at age twelve, and Slinky liked to sleep with her at night. And with the robberies occurring, he'd done it more than usual to protect her. Tonight, Slinky was curled up on the floor and was sleeping peacefully, same as everyone else, when something instantly woke him up! He opened his eyes wide, finding himself standing on his paws in a defensive stance. "Huh? What?" He wagged his head, confused. Then something tickled the inside of his long ears. Slinky raised an ear and listened intently. He heard...footsteps, beneath Mitsy's bedroom window! He crouched toward the window and listened harder: there were definitely footsteps, heavy footsteps, and none that Slinky recognized. He hopped up onto the bed and urgently nudged Mitsy's arm with his wet nose. "Mitsy! Mitsy, wake up! Quick!" He exclaimed. Mitsy lifted her sleepy head up and looked at him from the moonlight coming through the window.

"Slinky...what's wrong?" She asked groggily.

"Somebody's lurking outside, under your window! And I don't recall those footsteps before!" Slinky gulped. Mitsy gasped.

"Are you sure?" She asked nervously, instantly awake.

"I'm dead sure!" Slinky nodded. Mitsy reached into her nightstand beside her bed and slowly pulled out the handgun that Woody had given her and taught her how to use. Slinky sharply kept his eyes on the window, from his pounce boost on the bed. Mitsy nervously shifted out of bed and leaned up against the wall next to the window. Sure enough, someone was definitely lurking beneath her room, and now it sounded as if they were climbing up to it! Mitsy gulped hard in fright and her heart pounded. "I'd better get Woody." Slinky said and turned to go.

"No, Slink! Don't leave me by myself!" Mitsy begged, trembling. The loyal dog knew he should get his master, but he couldn't leave his friend...now. He had to protect her. He lowered his head, snarling and prepared to pounce if he had to. Mitsy shivered hard and broke out into a cold sweat. Her knees buckled. Suddenly, a pair of large, aged hands appeared! They ever so slowly opened the window!

"Now!" Slinky whispered loudly with a nod. Mitsy shrieked and banged hard on one of the hands with her firearm. The culprit yelped in painful surprise. "Close it!" Slinky hissed, and Mitsy slammed the window down on the burglar's free hand.

"DAD!" Mitsy yelled for Woody. "Dad! Come quick! Help!"

"Woody!" Slinky barked ferociously.

* * *

Woody and Bo Peep were cuddled closely in bed, peacefully sleeping when they heard the screams and barks. Woody jerked his head awake and jumped to his feet. "Mitsy's in trouble!" He gasped, quickly snatching up his handgun that he kept next to the bed.

"Oh, Woody!" Bo cried.

"Stay here, Bo!" Woody commanded and dashed from sight to his daughter's bedroom. "I'm coming, Mitsy!" He burst through her door, finding Slinky barking like there was no tomorrow and Mitsy leaning against the window, pressing it down as hard as she could. "Honey, what's wrong?" Woody asked.

"Dad, there's..." Mitsy began but stopped when the window sill popped slightly open and they all heard a thus then a loud groan on the ground below. They looked out: a large, hunched over, dark figure quickly but clumsily hobbled away from the house.

"YOU!" Woody yelled. "Stop where you are!" The man kept hurrying away. "Mitsy, stay here." Woody said firmly. "Come on, Slink!" Woody and his loyal dog friend rushed down the stairs, out the front door, and to the side of the house. They frantically looked around but didn't see the prowler anywhere. However, Slinky sniffed the ground then pointed.

"This way!" He yelped. They followed the trail so far until they reached the woods. The scent of strawberries was strong, but the bandit was gone. Woody sighed and headed back home to watch over his family. He found Bo in Mitsy's bedroom, the two of them holding each other closely. Mitsy still had the gun in her hand and she was shivering. Woody pulled out his walkie-talkie.

"Buzz! Buzz?" He spoke into the phone. "Buzz, wake up! I need you over here on the double! Someone just tried to break in!"

* * *

"Ryder! Hello, Ryder?" Buzz Lightyear's voice cackled on Ryder's Pup Pad. Ryder groggily sat up and answered it.

"What? Oh, Buzz. What's going on?" Ryder yawned.

"There's been a burglar at the Prides' home." Buzz said.

"What?!" Ryder gasped, much more alert now. "Is everyone okay?"

"I don't know for sure." Buzz replied. "But we could use your help and the Paw Patrol's!"

"Sure thing, Buzz. No job is too big, no pup is too small!" Ryder said. He paged Chase and Marshall, issuing them to follow him to the Prides' home.

* * *

Pete took Alex on a very long ride, and though the little boy was excited for his midnight adventure-despite the growing nausea in his stomach from his guilty conscience-, he was very tired from being up so unusually late. He actually dozed off a bit. Pete smiled creepily. "Perfect." He sneered, and reaching into Alex's pocket, he pulled out the child's iphone and tossed it away out of sight. Soon they reached their destination. He carefully carried the little boy inside and set him on a cot. Pete's cronies all stared wide-eyed at the package their equal ruffian had brought in.

"What do you think you're doing?" One of them asked. "What good is he to us?"

"Yeah!" Another agreed. "Lousy choice, Pete."

"Shut your traps, you pea brains!" Pete snapped. "Would you for once, just trust me?! This little bird will be more use to us than you think, especially when Big Lots returns with his loot. Is he back yet?"

"Nope. Let's just hope he made a smarter choice than _you did!"_

Startled by the unfamiliar, angry voices, Alex's eyes popped open. He sat bolt upright, fright on his face. No he really DID feel sick! "W-where am I?!" He gasped. "W-where's Grandpa? Pete, what are we doing here? Where's the ice cream for Grandpa?"

"Ice cream?" One of the guys jeered. "You must have told a wild one, Pete to get him to follow you!"

"Oh, you didn't know?" Pete asked Alex in mock sympathy. "Sorry, sonny. There's no ice cream here. I was just tricking you."

"That was mean!" Alex frowned. "I don't like you anymore. I'm going home."

"Whoa, not so fast, Shorty." A guy with a black eye patch said as he gripped Alex by his shirt collar. "You could easily get lost out there. You're safer here."

"I don't like it here." Alex wailed. "I wanna go home!" He flailed and kicked around in the air. He glared at Pete with tears in his eyes. "You big meanie! Let me go! I want to go home. I'm gonna tell my Grandpa on you!"

"Ooo." The thugs shuddered in mock fear.

"And when he finds out, the Paw Patrol will catch you, and Sheriff Woody will put you all in jail!" Alex growled.

"Oh no!" Pete gasped dramatically. "No, please! Not Sheriff Woody! Oh, boys, what do we do? What are we gonna do?"

"How about throw him to the Spike?" The guy with the black eye patch laughed. Alex gulped.

"Nah, that's too drastic," said a large woman with a black eye patch. "Look, Sweetie," she looked at Alex, "we don't wanna hurt ya. But if you tell anyone about us, you'll be in big trouble. Our plans will be ruined. If you tell anyone about us, we'll feed you to the Spike! Get it?"

Alex shivered. He didn't want to find out what the Spike was. He anxiously reached into his pocket for his phone, but it was gone! The gang laughed at the terrified dismay on his face. He burst into tears. "Paw Patrol, huh?" Pete remarked. "Hey, that's not a bad idea!"

* * *

Chase and Slinky sniffed out the escaped burglar into the woods until his trail of strawberry smell ended at a stream. They tried the other bank, but couldn't follow the scent anymore. However, there were wet footprints, so, using Chase's spotlight as a guide in the dark, they tracked those until they died down. "Looks like our troublemaker was kind of limping." Chase pointed out.

"Uh-huh." Slinky nodded. "And the dirt-bag was hobbling, with the short glimpse I had of him."

"Funny thing, I don't really smell cigars, do you?" Chase asked.

"Nope. I think we'd better get back." Slinky suggested.

* * *

"Then he hobbled off." Woody explained, wiping his forehead.

"You said he groaned?" Buzz asked.

"Yeah. My guess is he busted his leg when he hit the ground."

"Maybe he'd already busted his leg before." Ryder said as he appeared. In his rubber gloved hand, he was carrying a wooden walking cane. "I found this just below the window."

"Hmm." Buzz grunted, holding in the light of Woody's flashlight. "Pretty unwise on his part to try climbing up a two-story window if he didn't expect to be scathed."

"Yeah." Woody shook his head. After searching around for more clues, they all went inside. They found the girls in the living room. Bo and Mitsy were both clad in their bathrobes, and both sitting on the sofa while Jessie stood by, leaning on the armchair which Marshall was sitting in. They all looked up eagerly as the guys came in.

"Woody?" Bo asked.

"Did you fellas turn up anything?" Jessie added.

"This." Buzz pointed out. "Maybe we can run it for prints."

"The burglar wasn't wearing gloves," Mitsy gulped, "so maybe some prints _will_ turn up!"

"Let's hope so." Ryder agreed.

"You okay, honey?" Woody asked. Mitsy shrugged and nodded glumly. Woody looked to Marshall.

"No injuries. I think everyone is just a bit shook up." The Dalmatian smiled.

"Can ya blame 'em?" Jessie retorted. Bo stood and came to Woody. He wrapped his arm around her and Jessie sat down on the bed, close to her niece.

"I didn't think it'd come to this, but it looks like we'll have to set up the surveillance alarm here too." Ryder stated.

"Little late for that, isn't it?" Jessie asked skeptically.

"It can't hurt, Jess." Woody said, though he had to agree with her. He felt bad that his family had been targeted, and wanted any possible extra precaution they could get. "Thanks, Ryder. We'd better set it up, though I doubt they'll come back tonight."

"Why would they come here of all places?" Jessie asked. "That's downright dumb, sneaking into a sheriff's house if you ask me."

"Sounds like they were after Mitsy." Buzz said. Mitsy inched even closer to Jessie.

"But why?" Bo asked sadly.

"Who knows." Buzz shrugged. "Maybe they wanted to kidnap her so they could lure Woody into some sort of trap, but I'm just speculating." Bo whimpered and clung tighter to Woody.

"Well, thank God they blundered it." Woody spoke up, trying to erase his family's worry, plus not take for granted the blessings they did have that they were all together.

"Yeah, or _they'd_ be the sorry ones!" Jessie snapped. Just then Slinky and Chase returned inside the house.

"Well, we lost him at the stream." Slinky grumbled.

"We did find some tracks though. But they faded after a while." Chase said. "What I can't understand is why the burglar smells like strawberries!"

"Strawberries?" Jessie and Bo both sputtered. "What about cigars?"

"No trace of cigars." Chase shook his head.

"Well, thanks for your help, everyone." Woody sighed. "We really appreciate you coming so quickly."

"No problem, Sheriff Woody." Ryder smiled. "If you're ever in trouble, just yelp for help. Let's go, pups."

"I'm glad you all are okay." Marshall wagged his tail.

"Thanks." Mitsy tried to smile. Ryder and the pups headed back to the Lookout, but Buzz and Jessie lingered.

"Buzz, you two don't have to stay." Bo said softly, though she was grateful for the company.

"It's okay, Bo." Jessie said. "We just wanna see that our family is okay."

"It's all right, Mitsy. You're safe now." Buzz said gently. "You going to be okay?" Mitsy smiled feebly and nodded.

"I'm still scared." She said. "But things could've been much worse!" Buzz smiled at her attempt to stay brave.

"Well, it's pretty late," Woody said. "I suppose we should all get some sleep. But I promise, Bo, we'll set up the new alarm system first thing in the morning."

"We'd like to stay, Woody." Buzz persisted.

"Please, Woody?" Bo begged.

"All right." Woody smiled. "Thanks, guys. Buzz, you and Jessie can sleep in her old bedroom."

"Sounds good to me!" Jessie smiled coyly.

"Okay then." Buzz nodded. "Thanks, Woody."

"I...I think I'll sleep down here on the couch tonight." Mitsy said. "I don't feel like staring at my window all night."

"If it'll make you feel better, honey." Woody agreed.

"And I'll join ya." Slinky told Mitsy. "That way you won't be alone."

"Thanks," Mitsy answered.

* * *

Before Ryder, Chase, and Marshall returned, Skye was sleeping soundly, as were the other pups at the Lookout when her pup tag beeped. "Huh? What?" She opened one eye sleepily. "Ryder?"

"No, Skye. It's Alex!" A voice answered. Skye stood up and opened her eyes wider.

"Alex?" Skye yipped. "What's going on?"

"I'm in trouble, Skye. I need help!" 'Alex' wailed.

"Oh no! Hang on, Alex. I'll get the Paw Patrol." Skye said firmly.

"No, no. Everyone could get hurt! I need you, Skye. Right now! Please hurry and bring your helicopter!"

"O...okay." Skye said nervously. It wasn't like Alex to request for only one member of the Paw Patrol, and Skye thought that was odd. But she couldn't abandon her friend in trouble. "I'm coming, Alex!" She said, and activating her chopper, flew off into the night.


End file.
